It was bright & sunny when we got to Lassiter Mill which made for a beautiful setting as we started the session.  Now, if you’ve never had an engagement session, or even a portrait session, it generally takes a little while to get warmed up.  Well, that was just not the case.  Maeghan kicked off her shoes, we climbed all over the rocks and ledges and got some really great shots of both Tony & Maeghan.  The structure, scenery and light combined with a great couple really had the time flying by and, before we knew it, we needed to head into downtown Raleigh to continue their e-session.

Once in downtown, the sun was fading behind the buildings which is one of my favorite times of day.  We, as per my usual method, just took a walk about the area and found places with good light – either natural or my own.  By this point, both Tony & Maeghan had changed clothes to feel more “urban” and I was definitely feeling the need to go more dramatic and slightly sexy with the photography.  As we were wrapping up the session, someone started shooting fireworks off of a parking deck.  As hard as we tried, we could not get any in frame because, well, they were being slightly covert about it.  Regardless, it was a really fitting end to a really great engagement session.

I hope you enjoy the photos!

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We started very close to Fayetteville St using  a cool walkway with some newly blooming trees in the background.  We moved down towards Moore Square as they also brought their 4 legged family member with them and we needed so grass time.  I don’t do a lot of pet photography but I’ve had a shot in mind for some time that I wanted to do, and this was a great opportunity.  After a friend picked up their dog, we kept strolling around the downtown Raleigh area hitting a few familiar places but also discovering quite a few new ones that, frankly, I got really excited about.  For me, I follow the light instead of the place.

We also headed up to the Stockroom, where their wedding reception will be, and got some impromptu shots.  When we came outside, the sun had set and we finished off the evening with some very cool twilight photography that really shows off how gorgeous the downtown area, and my couple, are when put together.  As always, here are a few shots from their session!  I hope you enjoy!

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Southern Pines is a gorgeous example of a quaint small southern town with it’s small artisan stores on main street which is divided by the train station.  I’d never been to this part of town before but, in all honestly, I am definitely going back.  We came across so many tucked away shops and stores that I can easily spend a day just walking around.  Will had mentioned that they had also found a “stable” but, honestly, I had figured it would be a small farm/stable that had been inactive for some time.  After we walked around the downtown Southern Pines area, we headed over to the stable and, to my surprise, it was a huge, active farm with 5 horses running around.

I hope you enjoy a few photos from Will & Ansley’s engagement session!

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We started out around Duke Chapel on the Duke University Campus and did some work, both together and individual portraits of them both.  The architecture is so completely beautiful around the chapel that it makes it one of my favorite places in the world to photograph.  Add into that a smokin’ hot couple and you’ve got a recipe for an awesome engagement session.

After we left the Duke chapel, we headed over to Brightleaf square in Durham.  Brightleaf square is a renovated tobacco warehouse that now houses jewelry stores, restaurants, coffee shops and other assorted shops in a very quaint and romantic setting.  In other words, perfect for an engagement session.  To make it even better, we stopped in a coffee shop where my lovely couple had their first date.

I hope you enjoy a few select photos from Nabila & Ali’s engagement session!

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Neither Alison or Michael were very familiar with the location so the first challenge we had was actually getting down onto the bedrock behind the damn (LOL).  Once we were down there, it’s like a different world.  The roar of the waterfall (ok, I know this is not Niagara Falls, but for Raleigh it’s pretty good), the sand, trees and glass filled houses all make it feel like a completely different area and not 1/2 mile from the interstate.

So, as we started the session, I had a few ideas that were a crazy but, then again, I wanted their Raleigh engagement photos to be totally unique as their Angus Barn Wedding in the Wine Cellar will  be.  So as we worked around the area, I got this idea to use the rushing water, motion and the lines of the spillway wall in a shot.  I will not tell you how I did this but, I can tell you, please don’t even think of stepping into that water – you will need an ambulance if you do (no, I didn’t need an ambulance).  Anyway, Alison and Michael has been concerned they would be “stiff” in their photos.  This is a concern a lot of my clients have and the funniest thing is I have never really seen a stiff client.  If you are nervous, you have your best friend right there to help you out.  So, in other words, the session was great and Alison, Michael and myself all had a great time with the shoot!

I’m really excited to be shooting their wedding in December!  I hope you enjoy a few choice selections from their engagement session!

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Photographing a wedding photographer is, in all honesty, a very fun event full of gamesmanship.  I’m trying to see if he is looking at what I am doing then I do things to make him think, what the heck is he doing???  I suppose it’s going to be like that with any profession but, with me, I just wanted to have some fun with it.   Chris & CJ wanted their e-session at one of my favorite places – the American Tobacco campus (Bay 7) around sunset.  As we got down to business one thing became very apparent – CJ & Chris really love each other and we ended up with some really stellar engagement photography. The one thing I love most about the American Tobacco Campus is the feeling of urban revitalization and how well if fits Chris & CJ’s photography session.

As always, here are a select few of my favorite photos from their session!

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As they weren’t as familiar with downtown Raleigh, they very gladly let me guide them around to different areas from Fayetteville St. to Moore Square, and quite a few places in between.  As I’ve said many times before, I really enjoy working in this fashion, especially to get their engagement photos,  as it lets me follow the light and takes me to some pretty cool places.

Ashley & David wanted to mix it up a bit by both getting shots that reminded them of Savannah as well as more urban and edgy.  So, to coin a new photography term, “deep-south Metropolitan” is the end result – which I loved!  I want to thank both Ashley & David for letting me lead them around Raleigh for a few hours and trusting in me to, A – not get them lost,  B – to get some beautiful engagrment photos and, C – to get a really diverse feeling for their session – which I could NOT have done without their upmost faith and trust.  Thank you thank you thank you!!

Now, of course, on to a few of their spectacular engagement photos.

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Jenn actually works in the Raleigh NC wedding industry so it’s a huge compliment, as she knows many wedding & engagement photographers in Raleigh, that she choose me to shoot her wedding and engagement session.  Like almost all of my clients, Jenn & Chris were a bit apprehensive when we first started.  I think everyone except for professional models feel this way – I should know as I get photographed myself every few months so I can better identify with how it feels on the “other side”.  That really didn’t last long as Jenn & Chris have a hilarious sense of humor and getting splashed from the water fountain from the Old Well on the UNC campus got everyone loosened up.

We walked around the campus and got some great shots on the steps of the UNC Alumni Hall and Morehead Planetarium.  As we were wrapping up, it was well past sunset and as I love shooting at night, we got some really cool shots with the lights on the Campus and Franklin Street shining bright.

Hope you guys enjoy the photos!

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Jenna’s idea was to find local wineries and have their engagement session at one of them.  Well, she found two that she really loved and trying to choose between them was difficult.  Looking at it from my perspective – two wineries + awesome couple = no brainer, let’s go to them both!

We started out at the Cloer Family Vineyards in Apex, NC.  They have a very nice & quaint “tasting” area with the wine casks in the back and a gorgeous property with their vines growing around a centrally located pond.  Funnily enough, the winery started off as their “hobby” and, for some part, still is.  We headed over to Adams Vineyards in Willow Springs after this and witnessed a stunning sunset.  The drive from Apex to Willow Springs is not exactly short so I think we were all ready to rock as soon as we pulled up as the sun was just barely over the horizon still.

As I hope you’ll agree…  the “different” photos we got are stunning and a huge thank you to Jenna & Jason for trusting in my vision for their unique engagement photography.

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When I met up with Mary Channing and Jay, we just decided to walk around the area to see where they are most comfortable and take some great engagement pictures.  Downtown Raleigh has a wealth of architectural and artistic scenery to use in engagement photography and we certainly took advantage of quite a few unique locations.  Engagement sessions are a great way to get to know your clients and, as it’s just the three of us, it’s a much more intimate environment to work with each other.  On the wedding day, any awkwardness and unfamiliarity with each other is gone.

I love how their engagement pictures turned out and I hope you will enjoy a few select photos from their session.

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This trip was no different.  Since we shot in the morning & early afternoon, the heat wasn’t too bad (from the weather – my clients, however, are smokin hot) so we were able to walk all over the area and work with some lovely gritty backdrops that are perfect for this type of photography.  Wilmington wedding photographers have a lovely diversity of scenery at their fingertips and, during my short duration here, I took advantage of it all.  As we were finishing up the session, I think we all realized that no food had been consumed so we stopped by the “Slice of Life” for a few slices of really good pizza.  Another reason to walk around and see what you can find – great pizza!

I want to thank Elizabeth & Jeremy for making the trip, being so awesome to work with and generally having a great time with my in Wilmington, NC.  It was a blast working with you both and I cannot wait for your wedding!

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We visited every corner of the Gardens, photographing and generally just having a great time.  My engagement sessions tend to take on a life of their own as I want to make sure my clients are really themselves.  So as we walked around the gardens we would just pick a place that looked cool and started working there.  With the cloudy skies we weren’t limited in where we could shoot and we certainly took advantage of it.

After the Duke Gardens, we went into downtown Durham to get more urban surroundings.  Now, it has been some time since I did a “walkabout” in downtown Durham.  I was really impressed with the art, boutique shops, restaurants and just the overall feel of the area.  Last time I was down here, let’s just say it wasn’t like this.  We promptly got lost walking around (disclaimer – not really lost, just no idea where we really were).  and found the absolute coolest places to photograph.  This is why I love walkabouts…  you run into things you would just never find otherwise.

At the end of the night, we were treated to a spectacular sunset.   I mean spectacular!!!  I kept telling Anna & Steve “One more time” as I couldn’t bear not shooting everything possible with that gorgeous backdrop.  I’m really looking forward to shooting your wedding in November and I hope you enjoy the photos!

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Brook and Ashley are getting married at the Mast Farm inn next year so, in keeping with that theme, getting some Duke Gardens Engagement Photos definitely was fitting.  The skies were nice enough to hold off on us and provided some really cool light to shoot their engagement session with.  I’ve been to Duke Gardens on quite a few occasions for bridal portraits, wedding and engagement sessions but, for some reason, I had never really gone over to one side of the area.  Not sure why but Brook and Ashley knew their way around and it was like discovering an entirely new world.  A beautiful white bridge spanning the water and, what I can best describe as a jigsaw bridge were just two features that we came across.  There are so many beautiful places in the gardens that, honestly, I could take photos everyday for a year and still not cover the entire park.

I’d like to wish Brook & Ashley a very happy engagement and am really looking forward to your wedding next year!  Here are a few photos to enjoy!

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Now I have photographed many Umstead Hotel weddings and other events over the past few years and while it is one of my favorite places to photograph, I have never shot an engagement session there previously.  This was an epiphany of sorts when Jonathon and Stephanie asked me about places to shoot.  The rest, as you can say, is history!  We were given access to the hotel, lake & pool areas and with cloudy skies above, we were all alone with the exception of their pooch who made a brief appearance with us down by the water.

After the rain started threatening we decided to have a quick clothing change and then move closer to indoors should the rain decide to make an appearance.  The Umstead Hotel has so many beautiful places to work in that it doesn’t matter if we are inside or outside… the photos are beautiful!  I hope you enjoy a few photos from the session below.

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As we walked from the parking lot down into Duke Gardens, we both exclaimed how we could not have asked for a more perfect day for an engagement session.  With both Joanna and Andrew working at local hospitals (Duke & UNC), it was a real treat to have everything cooperate as their time is limited.  We literally walked from one end to the other of the gardens just hanging out and photographing wherever looked pretty – including the backside of the bathrooms.  Now you know a place is pretty when the bathroom walls, exteriors walls, are photogenic.  With so many different things in bloom, we probably could of continued walking and photographing well past dark, but our stomachs began to call our names after a while.

On a funny sidenote – Joanna mentioned Sushi.  Well, my Sushi prowess is 2nd only to my cupcake prowess so when she invited me to dinner with them, I couldn’t resist.  We ate at Sushi Love (appropriately named) in Durham and I introduced them both to Sashimi style Maki (Tuna).  Even though we had already left Duke gardens, I spotted a water fountain when driving by the restaraunt that would make the perfect last photo for their engagement session, so the last shot is just outside Sushi love.  Thank you both so much for everything!  I cannot wait for your wedding in September and I know we are going to really have a great time!

As always, here is a small sampling of their engagement session from the Duke Gardens:

I love this pond at the Duke Gardens!

Even the Duke Gardens bathrooms are pretty.

It's all about the wedding ring in this one

The Duke Gardens are beautiful in the spring

I really love cinemagraphic photography

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With it being fall, the skies are a beautiful blue, the trees are full of color and spending an afternoon photographing an equally wonderful wedding client was really why I love this job so much.  Yates Mill Pond is also a wildlife refuge so animals aren’t allowed but it does give you the opportunity to catch some cool wildlife.  Unfortunately (or fortunately, depending on your viewpoint), nothing made an appearance during our engagement session so we focused primarily on my lovely clients.

It seems a lot of my clients have evening weddings so it was a wonderful change to work outdoors using natural light and just a little of my own.  I hope you enjoy a select few choices from Sarah & Troys engagement session at Yates Mill Pond!

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Seeing them for this session was, quite literally, just like seeing some longtime friends for a great day out in the park. I can’t remember how long we actually shot, but it literally just flew by and before we knew it, the sun was going down. I love engagement photography because of this very reason, getting to know your clients and getting great photographs without a looming timeline of a wedding.  With their wedding fast approaching, I cannot wait to work with them again! Stay tuned for a beautiful wedding and reception on April 24th, 2010! Please check out their photos below!

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If you have not been to Bay 7 on the American Tobacco Campus before, I highly recommend you make the time.  It’s such a unique space that has been beautifully renovated and includes a lazy river, many restaurants and other businesses that you will certainly enjoy your time spent.  If you follow my photography you will know I love architecture and this place really just has a wonderful “feel” to it.  I really appreciate you both freezing in the name of photography!!!!  As always, here are a few photographs and I am really looking forward to your wedding!

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As Emily is used to the camera doing the weather every morning for WGHP, I had no doubts that our session would certainly be fun & relaxed. We were blessed with cloudy skies as we strolled around downtown Raleigh photographing the happy couple and yes, I did resist asking Emily stupid weather questions. Although I did embarrass myself at first, we won’t go into that so much because, well, it’s my blog. I think Emily had me laughing more then I had her laughing so I need to brush up on my photography banter before their wedding next month.

Here’s a few of my favorites shots from the day!

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As we walked around the Campus, we stopped at the old well, a wonderful brick sidewalk, the UNC gardens (complete with trees to climb) and I finally got to do a shot I’ve really been wanting for a while involving pedestrians and a crosswalk.

So, without further nonsense from me, I’d like to present Rachel & Ed!

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Last week I hung out with some great folks from the Pictage Users Group (PUG) to get a little pre-season warmup.  The PUG group had organized two couples to go around Downtown Raleigh and volunteer us photographing them.  I love these types of sessions as it mimics how I do my engagement sessions as well as a little wedding photography as well.  Literally walk from point A to B and find a few points inbetween that are really cool.  With 7 photographers around, it’s not always the easiest to work that exact shot you want, but our couples were real troopers and we got some wonderful photography as a result.

ere’s a few shots from the meeting:

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As you may know, I love including cityscapes in my photography and I don’t think I’ve ever been as excited to do a shoot as I was this one. Using the scenic backdrop of Charleston coupled with the city provided lighting (and a little of my own), we really captured the spirit of the city and, more importantly, Lindsay & Kyle. Both of them were a total joy to work with and the more we photographed, the more I could how much in love they are!

So, congrats to Lindsay & Kyle! Here’s a few shots from the day (and night)!

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I must give full credit to the both of them.  The wind was whipping and it was pretty cold but they were total troopers for the whole photography session.  Of course, they had each other to keep warm and I did promise hot coffee afterwards, so hopefully it wasn’t too awful for them. The end result, through all the cold and wind was some beautiful engagement photography that shows their love and the beautiful downtown Raleigh cityscape.

Now onto the photos!

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